Op/Ed

Computer Virus: WannaCry? No

Posted May 17, 2017 04:15 am | Op-Ed

By
Blake Dowling

Ransomware has become the fastest growing cyber
threat; last week it was a variation called Fatboy, this
week is WannaCry. The criminals are targeting everyone
from home users to health care systems to big business.
Data show that there has been an average of more than
4,000 ransomware attacks every day of this year. That is
some serious volume.

I know of a dozen entities that have been hit, some
hit hard.

On May 12, information technology professionals began
tracking a new ransomware variant that spread rapidly
throughout the weekend. It is a highly virulent strain
of a self-replicating ransomware that has affected
organizations like the Russian Interior Ministry,
Chinese Universities, Hungarian and Spanish Telcos, as
well hospitals and clinics run by the British National
Health Services.

It is especially notable for its multi-language
ransom demands that support every major language on the
planet. These criminals need to be hunted down now.

Patients’ lives were put on the line in Britain.
Surgeries and procedures were delayed. I have not heard
of any fatalities, but the hammer of justice needs to
find these cyber-weasels STAT.

On to the techy details, this ransomware is being
called several names: WannaCry, WanaCrypt0r, WannaCrypt
or Wana Decrypt0r. It is spread through an alleged
National Security Agency exploit (I said “alleged” NSA,
don’t come looking for me) called ETERNALBLUE that was
exposed online in March by the hacking
syndicate Shadow Brokers.

Bottom line: make sure someone manages your
technology.

Make sure someone has been reviewing, confirming,
patching, and applying any current updates that may put
added security to your firewall, operating systems (if
you are still running Windows XP, you fail), anti-virus
and anti-spam solutions.

It is most important that now and going forward that
you and your users do not click on emails that hold the
following threats; (some may get through these layers of
security).

Emails from HR Professionals claiming to include
resumes, financial institutions, and shipping companies
are some of the most common.

Be extremely wary of any Microsoft Office email
attachment that recommends you enable macros to view its
content. Unless you are absolutely sure that this is a
genuine email from a trusted source, do not enable
macros. Instead, delete the email at once.

This latest attack stayed on the other side of the
pond – for now – but thanks to technology, our world is
inner-connected like never before.

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Blake Dowling is CEO of Aegis
Business Technologies and can be reached at
dowlingb@aegisbiztech.com. Column courtesy of Florida Politics.

Graphic and
layout by the Observer

This piece was reprinted by the Columbia County Observer
with permission or license.